It's Time to Leave "Value Proposition" Behind
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Read time: 3 min
At a glance:
Quote: Focus on what we really need
Lesson: Positioning encompasses what value proposition is trying to accomplish
Quote
"The best way to find out what we really need is to get rid of what we don’t."
Marie Kondo
Lesson
The world of marketing and branding is complicated. So complicated in fact, most marketers don’t have a clear grasp of all the tools and frameworks they need to build a strategy and a plan.
Why?
We are bogged down by lexicon and jargon, not unlike any industry that has been around for awhile.
I say it’s time to clean house.
In this issue, I’ll help you truly understand what is “value proposition” and how it can be abandoned for a clearer and more powerful concept: Positioning. I’m not an academic, and so my point of view will always err on the side of application and practicality. Are you open minded? If so, read on…
Ditch value proposition, embrace positioning
The definition of value proposition
Value proposition is the full mix of benefits or economic value which it promises to deliver to the current and future customers who will buy their products and/or services (Wikipedia)
It’s derived by looking at the pains, needs and wants of the customer and matching them with the features, functional and emotional benefits of the product.
“Howie, isn’t this important? Why trash it?”
It is important, but it’s insufficient, the work is not done, because a value proposition alone is not unique or different and it will simply blend-in with the myriad of options in the marketplace.
This is where the concept of positioning comes in.
The concept of positioning
Positioning refers to the place that a brand occupies in the minds of the customers and how it is distinguished from the products of the competitors (Wikipedia).
A positioning strategy is determining and deciding what is the most RELEVANT and DIFFERENTIATING for a TARGET CUSTOMER SEGMENT.
If you have this in mind, there is no need for a value proposition, because it’s a more encompassing concept.
By understanding the target customer, the product and the white space unoccupied by competitors, you can uncover opportunities for a positioning strategy which incorporates the unique benefits you need to communicate anyway.
Said another way, if you focus on positioning, the value prop is already covered.
So simplify and drop the value prop… stop trying to figure out why their different, when to use what and end up confused. Decide on clarity now.
Your objections, my replies
But Howie…
1/ I’ve read somewhere that the value prop is what is on the landing page, so don’t I need one?
Copy on the landing page should be a headline that hooks the audience. It is an expression of the positioning and brand strategy into a creative line as defined by a creative campaign brief, not a “value proposition”. Why not have a headline that not only communicates the benefit, but starts to own a unique space in the mind of the customer? So no, you don’t need it.
2/ Isn’t the value prop a broader concept than positioning?
The value prop as discussed earlier is not differentiated and hence you may read online that it is a broader concept. It is less specific and not as effective as it fails to consider the competition. Pass on the value prop.
3/ Don’t we have to communicate the benefits through a value prop?
Nope. See 1/.
Conclusion
Stop being confused on value proposition vs. positioning. Think of positioning as being inclusive of what the value prop is trying to accomplish, so drop it and keep it simple.
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